Church of St Peter and St Paul, Shepton Mallet explained

Church of St Peter and St Paul
Location Town:Shepton Mallet
Location Country:England
Completion Date:15th century
Map Type:Somerset
Coordinates:51.191°N -2.5457°W

The Church of St Peter and St Paul in Shepton Mallet, Somerset, England, dates from the 12th century and has been designated as a Grade I listed building.[1]

There is evidence of a church on the site from before the Norman Conquest and the font may date from that time. The only other remains are the walls around the chancel arch.[2]

The current building is largely from the 15th century, with further rebuilding in 1836 to 1837 when the chapels, aisles and transepts were demolished in order to enlarge them.[2] The timber roof includes 350 panels of different designs and 36 carved angels along the sides, which was described by Nikolaus Pevsner as "the finest 15th century carved oak wagon-roof in England".[3] The stone pulpit dates from around 1550 and has six carved panels.[2]

The four stage tower was built around 1423, with four pinnacles, a lozenge parapet, triple window arrangement and stair turret.[4] It was originally intended to have a spire but this was never built.[5]

The Millennium Window (2000 AD) was designed, constructed and installed by local stained glass artist John Yeo.[6]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Church of St Peter & St Paul . 2008-03-02 . historicengland.org.uk .
  2. Book: Robinson, W.J. . West Country Churches . 1915 . Bristol Times and Mirror Ltd. Bristol . 144–149.
  3. Book: Leete-Hodge, Lornie . Curiosities of Somerset . 1985 . Bossiney Books . Bodmin . 0-906456-98-3 . 20 .
  4. Book: Poyntz Wright, Peter. The Parish Church Towers of Somerset, Their construction, craftsmanship and chronology 1350 - 1550. 1981. Avebury Publishing Company. 0-86127-502-0.
  5. Book: Bush, Robin. Somerset: The Complete Guide. Robin Bush (historian). Dovecote Press. Wimborne. 1994. 179–181. 1-874336-26-1.
  6. Web site: The Historic St Peter and St Paul . St Peter and St Pauls Parish Church . 3 February 2011 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20080514173258/http://www.mediaconcepts.co.uk/peterpaul/church.shtml . 14 May 2008 .